ST. PAUL, Minn. – The Concordia University women's basketball team (11-8, 7-6 NSIC) controlled play on both ends in an 82-46 win over Southwest Minnesota State (2-16, 2-12 NSIC) on Saturday afternoon at the Gangelhoff Center. The Golden Bears limited the Mustangs to 24.5% (13-53) while shooting 56.9% (33-58) in the win.
The Golden Bears extended their winning streak to three as they consistently dominated play in both halves as they held SMSU below 30% from the floor in each half and shot above 50% in each.
In addition to a strong advantage in the shooting column, Concordia shared the basketball well with 21 assists compared to six for SMSU and forced 21 turnovers while committing 14.
Anika Whiting led a balanced CU attack with 16 points on 7-10 shooting while adding four boards, two assists and two blocks.
Mishayla Jones,
Ameshia Kearney and
Amanda Barton joined Whiting in double figures as 12 different Golden Bears scored.
Jones was nearly perfect from the floor as she hit 7-8 shots to finish with 14 points and five assists.
Kearney added 11 points on 4-7 shooting with four assists and Barton hit 3-5 from three to finish with 10 points and four rebounds off the bench.
Annessa Rosch scored a team-high 11 points for the Mustangs as no other players scored in double figures in the game.
CU Women's BB vs. SMSU 1.24.2015 - Images by
Justin Oakman
Concordia put the game out of reach quickly as they scored the first 13 points and ran out to a 22-1 lead in the first 7:11 of the game. The Mustangs missed their first nine shots from the floor before Rosch broke the streak with a layup at the 13:26 mark. The Golden Bears stretched it to 24 at 27-3 before SMSU cut the lead back to 31-15, but they were unable to pull any closer the rest of the way.
The Golden Bears settled with a 44-17 lead at the break as they outscored the Mustangs 22-2 in the paint in the half. CU held SMSU to 20.0% (5-25) in the half while shooting 17-27 (63.0%) themselves.
The lead continued to grow in the second half as it reached 30 at 52-22 at the 16:02 mark of the second half. By the 9:37 mark, the lead was up to 41 at 69-28 as the Golden Bears continued to push their advantage.
The lead reached as large as 43 before the Golden Bears closed it out by a final score of 82-46.
Concordia will look to extend their winning streak on the road this weekend as they travel to MSU Moorhead and Northern State.
